Automatic feeding device



Nov. 1, 1932. s. c. LUCAS AUTOMATIC FEEDING DEVICE Filed Oct. 11, 1930 3 Sheets-Sheet l M4 Q mwaxkwg Nov. 1, 1932. s. c. LUCAS AUTOMATIC FEEDING DEVICE 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct. 11. 1930 /NV/5NTO3: 8M 0. L

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Nov. 1, 1932. s. c. LUCAS AUTOMATIC FEEDING DEVICE Filed Oct. 11. 1930 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 ll'llllllll lalIm Patented Nov. 1, 1932 E'I'ED $TATES PATENT OFF'IQE.

SAIVIUEL C. LUCAS, OF CANTON, OHZO, ASSIGNO'R TO THE TIMKEN ROLLER BEARING COMEANY, ()1 GANTGN, @I'EIO, A CORPORATION OF OHIO AUTOI'IATIC FEEDING DEVICE Application filed October 11, 1930.

lviy invention relates to automatic feeding devices, particularly to a device for automatically feeding annular members, such as roller bearing cages, to a press and mechanically placing them on a die member.

The principal object of my invention is to devise a mechanism for delivering annular perforated members,such as roller bearing cages and the like, to a press and automatically placing them on a die member in a definite position with respect to the perforations of the cage for accurate winging of the bridges, that is, breaking down or beveling off the corners thereof to adapt them to cooperate with the rolls of a roller bearing,

for other similar operations.

' My invention consists in the automatic feeding device, and in the parts, combinations and arrangements of parts hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, which form part of this specification and wherein like reference numerals refer to like parts wherever they occur,

Fig. l is an elevation with several parts broken away, of a winging press equipped with a feeding device embodying my invention,

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the construction shown in Fig. l,

Fig. 3 is a plan view showing the general lay-out of the press and feeding mechanism,

the top portion of the press being removed,

Fig. 4 is a similar view showing the feeding device about to release a cage on the press,

Fig. 5'is a side view of the press showing the tripping means for releasing a cage on the press; and

Fig. 6 is a sectional view along the line 66 of Fig. 3.

While my invention is applicable for feeding annular members to presses or other machines. for the pu pose of illustration 1 have shown a winging press 1 which comprises a table portion 2 supporting a lower die mem her 3 adapted to engage an upper die member 4 provided in a ram 5 mounted on a movable ca rier 6. In operating a press, a roller bearing cage is preferably placed on the lower die member when the movable carrier is Serial No. 488,182.

near or at the end of its upper stroke, and after the cage is worked on at the end of the downward stroke, it is ejected by suitable means ordinarily provided on presses, whereby the press is ready for another cage. My

device feeds a press continuously withoutcage A from the end of a feeding chute 9 and thereafter the free end of said arm is rotated until it reaches the center of the lower die member 3, whereupon a novel tripper arrangement causes the cage to be released.

Said feeding chute 9 is mounted on a brack- I et 10 which is bolted to a second bracket 11 mounted on the floor on which the press 1 is mounted. Said feeding chute 9 is inclined toward the end thereof, and cages ready for v the press are placed on the upper end of said chute, the weight of said cages causing them to slide toward the end, their travel being ultimately stopped by an arcuate lever 12 pivoted on the supporting bracket 10 and held in position by a small helical spring 13.

In order to place the cage with its perforations or pockets in such a position that it will be picked up by the catch levers 8, small springlike members 14, called agitators, extend inwardly from the side of said chute and act as tecth on a gear, and engage in the pockets of a. cage making the cage roll pass said members instead of sliding thereby. As the agitators are properly spaced and located with relation to the pockets and stop lever 12, a cage upon rolling past said agitators will be in a position to allow the catch levers 8 to enter the pockets and also far enough past the agitators that they will not interfere when the feeder arm moves the cage away.

The movable feeder arm which transports the cages from the end of the feeding chute 9 and places them on the-winging die is pivoted for rotation on a small horizontal shaft 15 mounted between upright portions 16 of a channel-shaped block 17 mounted on the top of a vertical shaft 18 extending from a gear box 19 so located with respect to the press and feeding chute, that at each end of the arms horizontal travel, cages carried thereby will be directly over the end of the feeding chute and directly over the center of: the winging die respectively. Preferabl the feeder arm in order to allow for slig t adjustments thereof comprises three parts, two of the parts 7a and 7 b being held tc ther by bolts 20 extending through slotted holes to vary the length of said arm, Whereas the remaining end part 7 c is secured tdthe middle art 7b by means of a horizontal 21 where y the height of the end of said arm-may be varied.

' Any number and size of catch levers 8 may be used depending on the size of the article to be picked up; and said catch levers are pivotally mounted near the center thereof and disposed in peripheral notches 22 provided at regular intervals around an enlarged circular end portion 23 provided on said feeder arm. In the construction illustrated I have shown three catch levers placed at annular intervals of 120 degrees, having found this arrangement best suited for use with roller bearing cages.

The catch levers 8 are provided with small tips or fingers 24 at the bottom thereof which extend inwardly and are tapered on the outside suficiently to allow them to snap over he bottom flange of a cage and protrude in the cage pockets, the catches being normally heldinwardly by means of leaf springs 25 provided in cam openings 26 in a disk 27 rotatable with relation to the circular end portion of the feeder arm on which the catch levers 8 are pivoted. The top portions of the catch levers extend up through said cam openings 26 and the springs 25 force the top ortions of said levers outwardly thereby oldi the tips 24 inwardly. By rotating the dis 27, the outside edges of the cam openings 26 are of such a shape that the top portions of the catch levers engage the same and are ushed inwardly, and thus by rotating the isk 27 the catch levers 8 will release a cage and let it drop. A releasing lever 28 tangentially from said disk 27 and a spring 29 secured to the feeder arm and sat lever holds the catch levers in their normal position.

The feeder arm 7 is swung horizontally from its loading position to its releasing position by any suitable means such as a cam (not shown) provided on the crank shaft of the press, the cam in turn being operatively connected to an arm 30 mounted on a horizontal shaft 30a extending from the gear box 19, said horizontal shaft 30a being provided. with a bevel gear segment 31 which meshes with a second bevel gear segment 32 mountmovement of the feeder arm is arranged conjointly with the operation of the press so that it will feed the press when the movable carrier is near or at the end of its upper stroke and swing out of the way during the downward stroke of the press.

In order to pick up a cage from the end of the feeding chute, it is obvious that the end of the feeder arm should drop directly over a cage for proper operation of the catch levers 8 and also at the releasing end, the feeder arm should be operated so as to drop down directly over the center of the winging die for definitely placing a cage thereon. This end is accomplished by means of an arcuate cam 35 mounted on a bracket 36 secured to the gear box 19, said cam 35 having semicircular recesses or notches 37 at each end for engaging a cam roller 38 mounted on the bottom side of the feeder arm near its oint of mounting. The weight of the fee er arm causes the so-called cam roller 38 to run on the arcuate cam 35 and the two semicircular notches 37 at each end of said arcuate cam allows the feeder arm to drop at its loading and feeding positions. Preferably in order to promote absolute dropping over the end of the feeding chute and winging die, the arcuate cam is fitted with an arcuate cam bar 39 which is fulcrumed at the center of the arcuate cam at 39a and cooperates with a trip lever 40 at each end cans-- ing the cam roller 38 to travel to the extreme end of the cam at either side before dropping. Small leaf springs 40a secured to the ends of the cam 35 and trip levers 40 respectively, hold the latter in a normal latching position. Obviously the cam roller upon striking the trip lever 40 at either end allows the cam bar to drop and the cam roller will then drop, together with the feeder arm which it supports.

Briefly, the operation of the present invention is as follows: The roller bearing cages are placed in the feeding chute, and

either by their own weight or by hand, if

necessary, are pushed past the agitators which correctly position the cage at the end of the feeding chute. The feeder arm, which is in continuous operation, reaches the loading position causing the cam roller 38 to trip the cam bar 39 whereby the feeder arm 7 drops and allows the catch levers 8 to snap over the bottom flange of the cage and into the pockets. The feeder arm is then rotated to the loading position whereupon the trip lever at that side of the arcuate cam, is struck and releases the cam bar 39, allowing the cam roller to fall into the semicircular notch and the cage on the die member.

In order to release the cage after the feeder arm drops in place a trip cam ll pro vided on a rod .12 extending from the movable carrier 6 engages a roller as mounted on the end of a lever la fulcrumed on the i press table 2, said lever a l having an arm l5 which curves upwardly and which is pro vided with an upstanding trigger 46 which engages the releasing lever 28 extending from the disk 27 and actuating the catch levers 8. It is obvious, in this connection, thatsaid trigger 46 is so connected with the movable carrier that it is set to release when the stroke of the press is at its highest position and helical springs a7 and as are arranged to bring the releasing tripper back to its normal position. After dropping and releasing the cage the feeder arm then swings to its loading position and the above series of events is repeated. Preferably a stop for cushioning the feeder arm at its releasing end is provided on the press table 2, said stop comprising a bracket i9 provided with a recess from which extends the movable stop 50 cushioned by a helical spring 51 disposed in the recess.

Obviously numerous changes might be made without departing from my invention and I do not wish to be limited to the pre cise construction shown.

lVhat Iclaim is:

1. In combination, a feeding chute, a work receiving member, means provided on said feeding chute for rotating the same, an abutment on said chute an'dlocated near said rotating means for stopping the work in said chute as soon as it is rotated and an oscillatively mounted arm adapted to carry the work from said feeding chute to said work receiving member. V g

2. In combination, a feeding chute, a work receiving member for annular perforated members, fingers extending inwardly from the side of said chute and arranged to act as teeth on a gear for engaging the perforations of an annular member passing thereby and causing said member to roll into a def- .inite position with respect to the perforations, and an arm adapted to carry the work from said feeding chute to said work receiving member. V

3. In combination, a feeding chute, a work receiving member for annular perforated members, a pair of fingersextending inward.- ly from the side of said feeding chute and adapted to position an article passing there by with respect to the perforations, an abutment in said chute located rearwardly of said fingers for stopping an article in such position, and means adapted to carry the annular members from said feeding chute to said work receiving member.

4. In combination, a feeding chute, a press for annular perforated members, a feeder arm pivoted for horizontal and vertical rotation, and means provided on the free end of said arm and adapted to engage the per-forations for lifting the work from the end of said feeding chute and placing the same in said press.

5. In combination, a feeding chute, a work receiving member, a pivotally mounted arm adapted to oscillate between said feeding chute and said work receiving member, and levers fulcrumed on the free end of said arm and-provided with inwardly extending tips for engaging the work, said arm being adapted to carry the work from said feeding chute to said work receiving member.

6. In combination, a feeding chute, an arm mounted for vertical and horizontal rotation and having an end portion provided with notches, pivotally mounted catch levers disposed in said notches whose lower ends extend below said end portion and are provided with a member provided on said arm and movably mounted with re spect thereto and having openings through which portions of said catch levers extend and the sides of said openin s engaging said catch levers and acting as a cam for rotating said catch levers upon movement of said member with respect to said arm. v

8. In combination, a feeding chute, a work receiving member, an oscillatively mounted arm for carrying the work from said feeding chute to said work receiving member, a circular portion on said arm and provided with peripheral notches, pivotally mounted catch levers disposed in said notches whose lower ends are provided with fingers which extend inwardly for engaging the work, a rotatably mounted disc provided with openings through which the top portions of said catch levers extend, the outer edges of said openings engaging the top portions of said catch levers, said outer edges being curve-d inwardly and acting as cams for bringing the lower tips of said catch levers outwardly upon rotation of said disc with respect to the circular end portion of said arm.

' 9. In combination, a work receiving memher for annular perforated members, a feed ing chute, an oscillatively mounted arm for carrying the work from said chute to said work receiving member, catch levers provided on said arm for engaging the perforations in said members, and means provided on said feeding chute for definitely positioning the perforated members so that said catch levers will engage said perforations.

,10. In combination, a feeding platform, a work receiving member, an arm pivoted for horizontal and vertical oscillation and hav ;,in a portion thereof adapted to travel from and feeding platform to said work receiving member, a cam element on said arm and a cam surface over which said cam element ,tra'vels, said cam surface having a notch in position to receive said cam element at the end of its travel in one direction, and means for controllingthe vertical oscillation of said am at each end of its horizontal travel.

I t 11. In combination, afeeding chute, a work receiving member, an arm adapted to carry the work from said feeding chute to said work receiving member, a cam roller mounted on the under side of said arm, an arcuate cum on which said roller travels provided with semicircular notches at each end for receiving said roller.

12. In combination, a feeding chute, a work 7 receiving member, an arm mounted at one end for vertical and horizontal oscillation, a roller mounted on the under side of said arm, an arcuate cam on which said roller travels provided at each end with semicircular notches for enga ing said cam roller, a cam bar pivoted at t e center of said arcuate cam whose top is flush with the central portion of said arcuate cam, and trip levers provided at each end of said cam provided with lugs for engagin said cam bar.

13. n combination, a feeding chute, a work receiving member, an oscillatively mounted arm having mechanical means for grasping the work from said feeding chute and trans ferring it to said work receiving member, and means provided on said arm coacting with means provided on said work receiving memher for releasing the work from said arm.

14. In combination, a feeding chute, a press comprising a work receiving member and a movable carrier, an oscillatively mounted arm whose free end travels from said feeding chute to said work receiving member, cat-en levers pivoted on said arm for grasping the Work, a releasing lever actuating said catch levers and asecond lever fulcrumed on said press provided with a trigger for engaging said releasing lever, said second lever being operatively connected with said movable car mer.

15. In a feeding mechanism of the class described, a feeding chute for annular perforated members, and members extending inwardly from the side of said chute and arranged to, act as teeth on a gear for engaging the perforations of a member passing thereby and causing said member to roll into a definite position with respect to the perforations.

16. In a feedin mechanism of the class described, an oscil atively mounted arm provided with a circular end portion having peripheral notches, pivotally mounted levers disposed in said notches whose lower ends are provided with tips extending mwardly for engaging an article, a member mounted on said circular end portion for rotation with respect thereto, said member being provided with cams for engaging the upper portions of said levers, and springs provided on said member engaging the inner portions of said levers and holding them against said cams.

17. In a feeding mechanism of the class described, a feeder arm oscillatively mounted, a roller mounted on said arm an arcuate cam on which said roller travels provided with semicircular notches at each end for engaging said roller, an arcuate cam bar pivoted at the center of said arm whose top portion is flush with the central portion of said arcuate cam on which said roller also travels, trip levers providedat each end of said cam having lugs extending inwardly for normally supporting each end of said cam bar, springs secured to the edges of said cam and to the outside of said trip levers for holding said trip levers in a vertical catching portion, and extensions provided on the top of said trip levers for engaging said cam roller for tripping the cam bar.

18. In combination, a feeding chute, a. work receiving member for annular perforated members, an arm pivoted at one end for vertical and horizontal oscillation, catch levers pivoted on the free end of said arm for engaging perftfiations in the work, means provided on said arm for tripping said catch levers, means provided on said work receiving member for actuating said tripping means and means provided on said feeding chute for definitely positioning articles passing thereby with respect to said catch levers.

19. In combination, a feeding chute, a work receiving member, an arm for transporting the work from said feeding chute to said work receiving member, said arm mounted for horizontal and vertical oscillation, levers pivotally mounted on said arm and provided with means for grasping the work, and a member movably mounted on said arm and havin cam surfaces for engagin said levers where y movement of said movably mounted member with respect to said arm operates said levers.

20. In combination, a feeding chute, a work receiving member, an oscillatively mounted arm for carrying the work from said feeding chute to said work receiving member, levers fulcrumed on said arm and having fingers for engaging the Work, a spring-like member extending a slight distance inwardly from the side of said chute and acting as a tooth on a gear for engaging a perforation of an annular member passing thereby and causing said member to roll to a definite position so that the tips of said catch levers Will extend into the perforations.

Signed at CantornOhio, this 7th day of October 1930.

SAMUEL C. LUCAS. 

